


My heart beats a poem.

by sans serif aster (ubercharge)



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Bad Puns, Boss Fight, F/M, Fusion, Minor Violence, Oneshot, SPOILERS FOR ALL THREE MAJOR ENDINGS, Soriel, Spoilers, and to a lesser extent genocide, mostly true paci but also neutral, of course that's a tag
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-16
Updated: 2015-11-16
Packaged: 2018-05-01 22:05:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,993
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5222669
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ubercharge/pseuds/sans%20serif%20aster
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <b>hey buddy, in case you didn't read the tags: huge mega spoilers ahead. as in, i literally used quotes from endgame. tread carefully.</b>
</p><p><a href="http://draekon.tumblr.com/post/133247742480/i-wanted-to-make-a-soriel-fusion-who-was-based">sans and toriel fuse</a> to protect frisk. literal world-breaking shenanigans ensue in a fight against hyperdeath asriel. op af skelegoat horror vs. Literally Your God Now.</p><p>love is a mystery. life is perfect.</p>
            </blockquote>





	My heart beats a poem.

**Author's Note:**

> i made a soriel fusion, [whose art and info can be found here.](http://draekon.tumblr.com/post/133247742480/i-wanted-to-make-a-soriel-fusion-who-was-based) i recommend reading it before reading this.
> 
> i wondered, what kind of a situation would be dire enough for sans and tori to fuse? i settled on something pretty logical: if they were present for asriel and frisk’s ~~fight~~ fun interaction where nobody gets hurt and everybody is happy. and even more so if they genuinely felt frisk was in danger.
> 
> in this au, sans and tori have already met and befriended each other. it is here that they test their skills, their bond, and their limit.

> _Our SOULs are two,_  
>  _but they’ll merge for you.  
>  _ _when you can’t run,  
>  _ _they’ll beat as one._

To move in the grasp of thorned vines might be easy when one is caught in a rosebush by accident, but it’s not so small a feat when the vines are as thick as one’s arm. To the credit of Frisk’s friends, they did try. They didn’t get anywhere with their attempts; the vines were just that strong. Even Asgore and Undyne couldn’t budge them.

Such is the power of six human souls.

And Flowey tried to attack Frisk with his magic bullets of white pellets. Again, to the credit of Frisk’s friends... they used their magic to deflect the pellets. Bound and struggling, they offered Frisk their support. Their words were strained, but their magic never faltered. Not for a second.

Flowey didn’t really mean it, he was just pretending to be defeated when the other monsters arrived. Their trips couldn’t have been short; many came from far beyond New Home. But they, too, offered Frisk encouragement. They cared for Frisk, all of them did. They hardly knew the human, but they cared nonetheless.

Monsters are kind of funny like that. Their souls, after all, are made of love, hope, and compassion...

Flowey wasted no time taking the form he’d been waiting to get back into. That of a young Boss Monster, very similar in appearance to Toriel and Asgore. He wore a green and yellow striped sweater. He shook his head a little. His clawed hands formed fists before opening again; he was trying to regain the feeling of having them.

“Finally. I was so tired of being a flower.”

He turned.

“Howdy! Chara, are you there? It’s me, your best friend.” he said, smiling at Frisk.

Light flashed.

 _ **“ASRIEL DREEMURR,”**_ he continued, voice echoing loud.

He turned to Frisk’s friends, still bound in thorny vines glowing white.

“And you guys,” he said, giving a toothy sneer. “Get to watch this world get torn to shreds.”

Frisk was impossibly small, standing between Asriel and their immobile friends. But their soul pulsed red and they gripped a worn dagger in their hand. A warning, small as it was. A message, clearly stating that they refused to back down.

“Don’t fight him! Let us help!” Undyne yelled, kicking her legs and ignoring the thorns cutting into her.

“WE HAVE YOUR BACK!” Papyrus added.

“It can’t be,” Toriel whispered, all the hope draining from her and being replaced with cold dread.

“Asriel? Is that... is that really you?” Asgore asked.

Asriel’s gaze flitted from Frisk to his parents. He rolled his eyes, raised a hand. With a single flick of his pointer finger, he sent another vine up from the floor to wrap around Asgore’s mouth.

“I didn’t ask you to speak,” he growled.

Toriel was sobbing openly now.

“Sans, we have to do something,” Papyrus hissed.

Sans didn’t say anything.

“His magic’s stronger than ours,” Undyne muttered as she hurled energy spears at the vines wrapped around her. She did so without fear, but also without success.

“A-aim lower, not at yourself,” Alphys said, her feathered crest quivering. “They’re coming out of the floor. M-maybe they can be uprooted, or...” she mumbled, trailing off because she, of all people, knew the extent of Flowey’s abilities. And now Flowey was even more powerful as Asriel.

Loud humming filled the air as a sudden shower of energy spears appeared and slashed at the vines holding everyone up. They hardly scraped the vines at all, but Undyne was relentless in her attack. Papyrus was quick to join her with a flurry of bones. Alphys did too, with jolts of electricity that were haphazardly called upon.

“We have to do something,” Undyne said, giving a loud shout as she rammed more spears at the vines.

“I’m TRYING!” Papyrus replied.

Wordlessly, Asgore added his own fire magic to the flurry.

Asriel paid them no attention as he rained balls of fire at Frisk. They ducked, rolled, jumped, had little trouble with dodging.

Behind the cascade of flame, Toriel’s loud sobs quieted to sniffling. Undyne, Papyrus, Alphys, and Asgore slowed their attacks to catch their breath. In the lull, Sans finally spoke.

“tori,” he said.

She didn’t reply, but her ear twitched just barely. Even then, Sans wasn’t looking; he was focused on the fight in front of him.

“remember what you told me?” he asked.

“Yes, I remember,” she said, words quiet.

Undyne yelled and the mass of vines quivered as they were struck.

“and?” Sans asked.

Toriel opened her eyes. “I want to act,” she said.

“ok, can you reach my hand from there?”

Toriel strained, ignored the thorns, and took Sans’ hand. It was cold.

“are you ready?” Sans asked.

“Yes,” Toriel murmured.

“focus.”

The world shattered into pieces and bled a technicolour apocalypse.

> _This road we pave,_  
>  _their SOUL we’ll SAVE._  
>  _as the clock hits twelve,_  
>  _into this fight we delve._

Asriel trailed light of infinite hues as he floated back and forth, smiling down at Frisk.

“Star Blazing!” he called.

A shower of stars slammed down and broke into even smaller stars. Frisk’s soul glowed red as they avoided getting hit. Acrobatic as they’d grown to be, they were still nicked on the arm.

“You know...” Asriel said. “I don’t care about destroying this world anymore.” He shrugged, shook his head and gave an amused look.

“Shocker Breaker!”

The floor flashed yellow-orange; a warning. Frisk hopped to and fro as blasts of white lightning struck down. They cried out when the beam hit them.

“After I defeat you and gain total control of the timeline... I just want to reset everything. Go, Chaos Saber!”

Asriel aimed at Frisk with two huge sabers.

“All your progress... Everyone’s memories. I’ll bring them all back to zero! Now, Shocker Breaker again!”

More lightning beams. Frisk stepped too slow and took it straight-on. They gave another cry of pain, a noise that resonated in all their friends’ hearts, existent or otherwise. Before their eyes, Frisk’s soul split in two.

“No!” Undyne cried.

Alphys’ eyes widened. Papyrus’ bone attacks clattered to the floor before fading away. Asgore was stricken.

But it refused.

It would not shatter; through the sheer power of determination it pieced itself back together.

And Frisk stood up. They were shaking. They tossed aside their worn dagger and faced Asriel. Fearless.

“I won’t fight,” Frisk said. Their voice scratched at their throat. It was rarely used.

Light flashed.

“You don’t have to,” a smoother voice said calmly.

> _Now the night is here_  
>  _into the dark we peer._  
>  _what we see is lost,_  
>  _ultimate is the cost._

Frisk turned, and looked thoroughly startled at what they saw. That was... Toriel, right? Arms covered in scratches, bits of thorned vines clinging to their blue hoodie with sleeves rolled up and...

The monster flexed their fingers in a manner not unlike how Asriel did so. They had a ruff of fur at the base of their neck. Their left arm was furred, fluffy at the elbows, but showing a ghastly flesh-and-bone wound on the side. Were Boss Monsters blue on the inside?

That did not explain their skeleton in any way whatsoever. Their entire torso from the ribcage to pelvis was bone, no flesh or fur to speak of. Same with their right arm. They had a long, skeletal tail that was tufted with fur only at the end. It thrashed back and forth, tossing aside vine bits. And their jaw, that lower piece of their skull, it was bone, too. With something like horns, almost, coming out the sides.

They looked very much like Toriel, though. Especially with those long floppy ears and the curved horns, albeit more angular now.

“Who are you?” Frisk asked, because they couldn’t think straight with the fabric of reality bleeding out around them.

The monster opened their eyes. Black, with bright white pupils. Similar to Asriel’s eyes, actually. They let out a puff of bright orange fire as they flashed their rows of glistening teeth.

“My name is Soriel.”

Frisk made a face, perhaps of bewilderment.

“What’s wrong, buddy?” they asked, giving a sharp-toothed grin. They flicked another piece of vine away, off their arm. “your friend’s been a real thorn in my side. I can’t be-leaf the nerve of this guy. vine are you doing this, huh?”

Frisk resisted the very real urge to groan out loud despite the severity of the situation. But they turned around to face an irritated and vaguely confused-looking Asriel.

“Oh no, no,” Soriel said. They laughed. It sounded less like a laugh and more like the rattling of bones. _“I'll_ take care of him.”

At that, Asriel wasn’t even insulted. He burst out laughing.

“This isn’t your fight,” he said. He clicked his claws together, sparking them like Toriel did when she was agitated and about to use fire magic.

“It is now,” Soriel replied, straightening to their full height.

> _You think i’m done?_  
>  _you think you’ve won?_  
>  _don’t be foolish, child._  
>  _the fight’s just begun._

The others were speechless. At a complete loss for words. Papyrus excepted, they stopped trying to cut themselves loose.

“How is that possible?” Undyne asked.

“Wow,” Alphys said, eyes sparkling with wonder. “I-I didn’t even know it was possible! All the evidence, a-and I still thought it was a m-myth all this time...”

“Did you know your brother could do this?” Asgore asked, turning to a very unfazed Papyrus.

“HE’S MY BROTHER!” Papyrus exclaimed. “BUT... no, actually.”

 _”How?”_ Undyne repeated, more insistently this time.

“S-soul fusion,” Alphys said. “I-I don’t know much about it, and a lot of stuff I do know is... p-probably wrong...? B-but listen! Being more magic th-than physical matter, monsters can fuse their s-souls and bodies, and with magic, they become c-completely new beings! Typically, the fusion is p-piloted by whoever has the stronger soul or will, so a lot of fusions d-don’t last when the monsters can’t cooperate well enough.”

“You’re telling me _she’s_ in control here?” Undyne asked. “Guess I’m not surprised Sans isn’t working, even now.”

“N-no, look!” Alphys exclaimed. “I-if they’re maintaining their form, that means they’re working in perfect harmony! That’s why fusions d-don’t tend to last. But they’re so in sync...” she said, in complete awe.

“THIS IS VERY CONFUSING!!” Papyrus commented. “Are you saying... Sans and the queen have MERGED?”

“S-sort of...?”

“THAT’S KIND OF WEIRD.”

“It’s been a long day, Papyrus,” Undyne said, watching Soriel standing in front of Frisk, looking up at Asriel.

Fearless.

> _Now the stars are here,_  
>  _now the moon is clear._  
>  _don’t deny it, dear,_  
>  _when your heart beats fear._

“You think you can stand up to me?” Asriel demanded, glaring at what he could hardly comprehend as a perverted monstrosity of nature.

“Yeah, sure. why not?”

“You’re a monster,” Asriel said, shrugging. “I understand if a _human_ can withstand my attacks. But you?” He smirked. “You don’t have a chance.”

“Try me,” Soriel said, adjusting their hood. “it’s a beautiful day outside. birds are singing, flowers are blooming...”

They paused, and Asriel glared at them, wondering if they were going to get to a point anytime soon.

“on days like these, kids like you...”

_Ding._

Asriel gave a yelp of surprise as his soul was forced into blue mode and it was grabbed. He was thrown down to a sea of bone.

“That was a bit harsh,” Soriel muttered, their menacing form flickering for a moment. “i know. i’m sorry, but we have to teach him a lesson.”

Asriel shook his head before rising again, floating in the midst of a backdrop that consisted of mind-numbing colours, shifting endlessly.

“Not bad,” he said, with a terse nod. “But if you think you can _actually_ hurt me, you’ve got another thing coming!”

“What would that be?” Soriel asked, stuffing their paws into their pockets and tilting their head. “heh, _goat_ for it.”

“Take this! Star Blazing!” Asriel yelled, summoning huge stars from above.

Soriel blinked and hopped back, avoiding the astral shower. Midair, they batted a star away with their lashing tail, and they landed with a loud _thump_ that pounded enough force down to crack the floor.

“What? did you think I was just gonna stand there and take it? heh. guess it’s my turn now,” they said, cracking their knuckles. On one hand, at least.

With a click of the claws and a spray of sparks, they summoned forth balls of fire flickering orange, swirling and being pulled back and forth as the black, red, blue, purple, green environment did, too.

Asriel scoffed.

Soriel spread their arms and flung several waves of fireballs forward. The sky rippled with a brilliant shade of red, then orange, then yellow.

Asriel swept his arm and deflected the flames with ease.

“You really do think you can do this, can’t you?” he asked, laughing. “Fine, I’ll play along. This is pretty funny. Let’s see how well you’ll do when I take your friends’ souls!”

“Ah, shit,” Undyne said. “They couldn’t have left this fight up to me?”

“D-don’t swear, the human can hear you,” Alphys hissed back.

A flash of white light, and everyone was gone. Even the vines that had been holding them all up.

Frisk wailed. Soriel’s ear twitched.

“Come on, then. show me what you can do. i’d really like to see,” Soriel said.

“Chaos Buster!” Asriel yelled, summoning a huge blaster.

Warning lasers were illumined against black, green, red. Soriel dodged the bullets that crashed into the floor and sent impossible chunks of matter spiralling into eternity. Their pawsteps were light now, but only just enough to keep them out of harm’s way.

“I’ve got a bone to pick with you. and trust me, child, you’re _not_ gonna find this very humerus,” Soriel said.

They summoned a line of fire - both orange and blue - and sent it forward before adding a rippling wave of bones coming up from the floor.

The attack caught Asriel by surprise; he took a few whacks to the chest. They singed his robes but he appeared entirely unhurt, despite the scowl on his face.

“Tibia honest, I think you need some help with your technique. your dodging is just... wow. you’re ribbin’ me here. so here’s a tip: don’t get hit.”

Soriel brought their skeletal hand up to their face as it glowed blue, forming another fireball in their palm.

“especially not by the blue ones, ok?”

Their eye flashed cyan as they flicked their wrist and sprayed out more blue fire.

Frisk couldn’t look at the blue fire directly; it hurt their eyes in a manner they couldn’t fully comprehend. But it was the light rays emanating strongly from the flames - infrared, ultraviolet, x-rays. Somehow combined with the fire magic to create something completely new, something scarier and harder to avoid.

Asriel did appear to be hurt by the initial blasts making contact with him, but he brushed them off like nothing had happened.

“Chaos Saber!” he yelled, raising his hands and summoning the blades. “You’re pathetic!” he spat.

“That cuts deep,” Soriel said, watching Asriel’s fingers clench around the Sabers’ handles. “a tone that sharp really wounds me. is it cause of me? maybe I should take the blade for it.”

“Shut up already!” Asriel snarled. “Take _this!”_

“Oh, no you don’t, child,” Soriel said, blocking the Sabers with two walls of bone. “where did you get those swords anyway? I can really imagine you, in dusty robes, skull-king around and dragging them behind you.”

Asriel lifted the blades and slammed them together hard enough so they broke straight through the bones and split into floating stars.

“Wait, where’d they go?” Asriel asked, irritated. He turned around to receive a fireball in the face.

“How did you-”

“Don’t interrupt me during my turn,” Soriel said, shaking their head and giving a _tsk_ of disappointment before whacking Asriel with a handful of bones.

> _Tired of this chime?_  
>  _tired of my rhyme?_  
>  _you should give in, child..._  
>  _or you’ll have a bad time._

“You have some tricks up your sleeve, and you’ve been holding your own so far... But if you think you can defeat me... Ha! Let’s go, Shocker Breaker II!”

Frisk clapped their hands over their ears. They could hardly stand being present for this awful fight, but there was nowhere to run off to in the midst of empty space. Soriel took note, would’ve liked to pick them up and reassure them if they had the time.

Lightning lasers blasted the floor, creating earsplitting noise. Soriel didn’t even bother trying to dodge. They disappeared and reappeared behind Asriel, watching the lightning sweep across the field from one side to the other.

“Too slow, too slow,” Soriel admonished.

When Asriel turned around, they teleported again to stand between him and Frisk. They stuck a blue tongue out - one eye went cyan - and blew fire out of their mouth that Asriel levitated aside to dodge. He gave an annoyed growl.

“Chaos Slicer!” he shouted.

Soriel danced back, taunting him as they summoned two large bones into their hands and parried. Asriel slammed the blades together, bringing forth an explosion of stars. Soriel glanced back to see Frisk still standing there. They crouched, gritted their teeth, and formed an ‘x’ with the bones as they were pushed back by the sheer force of the blast washing over them.

Soriel responded with a breath of two fire pillars swirling into one - orange, blue, merging into white. They spread their arms and added an army of bones to the mix, flinging them forward and making more surge through the ground so Asriel was forced to go on the defensive.

“Not bad!” he laughed, brushing away some burnt fur on his cheek. “Try a little harder, then maybe I’ll _almost_ be impressed! Come on, Galacta Blazing!”

Soriel was ready to dodge and teleport. That was what they did best in defense; avoiding the attack in the first place. But when Frisk gave a plaintive whine behind them, they figured they would have to brace themself for the hell that was raining down. With Frisk right there, what else could they do in the few seconds they had to act?

They formed a shield of bone, but it wasn’t enough to hold back all the stars. The bones split apart and faded away. Soriel’s tail whipped back and, in a display of ultimate paternal instinct in the face of death, they pulled Frisk into their shadow and sheltered their own head with no more than their arms.

“Stay down!” they yelled. Their claws scraped hard against an ink-black battlefield.

Frisk huddled down, gripping Soriel’s skeletal tail and burying their face in its furry tuft as the world around them cracked and shook and rumbled, breaking apart bit by bit in the wake of the unnatural cataclysm.

Soriel felt the stars cutting into them, magic against magic against limited physicality. For a moment, they sensed pulsing. Hundreds and thousands of souls swirling about inside of Asriel, somewhere in there. All of them, everyone’s souls.

They couldn’t take the attack, and as it subsided, their legs buckled and they collapsed to the floor. Frisk yelled something unintelligible that might not have even involved words.

Watching the stars swirl and fade into blackness around them, Soriel felt a twinge of something in their chest. Something like a memory, tugging at them...

***

 _Because she was feeling_ BONEly!

_you make it sound easy to bake a pie... easy as pie. does that count as a pun?_

_Yes, this door_ does _open..._

_wow. i don’t know what i expected you’re goat-ing to look like._

_Another snail fact? I’m_ shell- _ing them out fast as possible, hee hee._

_yeah, his name’s papyrus. he pushed me to get my sentry job._

_Ah, do not be afraid, my child. I am TORIEL, caretaker of the RUINS._

_D o n ’ t y o u k n o w h o w t o g r e e t a n e w p a l ?_

_While you are in a fight, strike up a friendly conversation._

_i’m sans. sans the skeleton._

_It’s dangerous to explore by yourself._

_he’s never seen a human before. and seeing you might just make his day._

_I am just a silly old lady who worries too much._

_man. isn’t my brother cool?_

_Um, I want you to know how glad I am to have someone here._

_are you lost?_

_Please, go upstairs._

_if i were you, i would make sure i understand blue attacks._

_Pathetic, is it not? I cannot save even a single child._

_what happened, tori?_

_The human has left._

_oh, shit._

_Could you please, please promise me something? Watch over them, and protect them, will you not?_

_i will. i promise._

_Thank you, Sans._

_...buddy. Y o u ‘ d b e d e a d w h e r e y o u s t a n d._

_How are they doing, Sans? How are you doing?_

_hey, uh... sorry for calling so late at night. is it... is it weird to tell you that i miss you?_

_...If you are not busy right now, come over._

_i’m not busy._

_I know how you feel about... feeling things. From what you’ve told me, it must be hard to try anything at all._

_..._

_I am sorry to summon you to my home so late at night._

_don’t worry about it, i’ve visited later, haven’t i?_

***

“Mom, no,” Frisk cried, gripping Soriel’s shoulders and trying to shake them. But they were too heavy. “Mom... p-please... Can you hear me?”

Asriel hovered over the two, watching the display with amusement written over his features.

“How amusing,” he murmured, raising an eyebrow. “Give it up, human.”

“No!” Frisk yelled, wiping tears from their face with a blue sleeve. “They’re okay! They’ll be fine!”

“This timeline isn’t yours to dictate anymore,” Asriel snapped.

“Mom, please wake up! Mom... d-dad...? Please, please, please...”

Asriel sighed loudly, and his sigh resonated with the hues behind him. It was a deep shade of emerald, his exasperation.

“It’s been a hilarious five minutes of watching this, but I’m going to need you to wrap things up so that _we_ can take care of our unfinished business. They aren’t the one standing between me and final victory. You are. And to me, with the power I have now? You’re nothing,” Asriel said, giving a sneer.

“Wake up, wake up, wake up, please!”

Soriel’s limp body twitched and shifted.

“Fine,” Asriel barked. “If you think you’re ready for the power I’m about to unleash-”

“Young man,” Soriel said, voice calm and smooth as ever.

They shook their head and propped themself up with a fluffy elbow.

“What?” Asriel asked in disgust.

Soriel opened their eyes. One was dark, the other blazed a neon-bright cyan. They pulled a shocked Frisk into their fur ruff and covered their ears before speaking again:

“You are fucking _grounded.”_

Soriel nuzzled the top of Frisk’s head, and then they stood up as if they hadn’t been knocked down in the first place.

“You can’t ground me!” Asriel cried in absolute indignance. His brow furrowed. “Survive _this_ and I’ll show you my special attack!”

He raised both arms and the colours in the sky dimmed until they were no more.

“Now, Hyper Goner!”

Upon seeing the giant goat skull materialize in front of them, Soriel gave a genuine grin. They turned to Frisk, looking significantly less surprised now, behind them.

“Cover your ears, my child.”

Frisk nodded slowly and did as told.

Light that didn’t even seem to have a sourced pooled in Soriel’s maw, open now as they collected it. A glow brighter than bright formed at the back of their throat as their lower jaw began to split. Pointed spikes grew out of their spine, all the way from their neck to the tip of their tail.

They were joined by a ring of blue and orange fireballs, along with flames in both palms snaking up their arms.

Finally, giant skulls of Soriel’s own appeared, shafts of light peeking out from between their sharp teeth.

The Hyper Goner skull laughed almost mockingly.

Soriel jumped up high. In unison, white pupils blinked out to black, and everyone fired. Frisk kept their ears covered. They were smart enough to avert their gaze. The ensuing tremors were violent enough for Frisk to feel the forces of power reverberating in their very soul. Bits of matter crumbled away, disintegrating entirely upon being hit by the light.

As Soriel loosed their blast, they were propelled backwards into the air. They landed on their paws, thudding hard against the floor. Light faded from their mouth, and the Gaster Blasters disappeared. Soriel flicked aside their flames, which rammed into the floor and left smoking remains.

Asriel reappeared, fading back into view. He even looked a little beat-up.

“How?” he demanded. “Even after that attack, you’re still holding on? How?!”

Soriel grinned.

“Determination.”

Asriel gave a cry of sheer rage, and hurled giant stars forward without any attempt at accuracy. The fight looked like the very cosmos being torn apart piece by piece.

Soriel’s pupils blinked out and they pulled Asriel into a trip through space-time. Bones erupted from the ground, fire was thrown, more and more and more bones appeared. Asriel didn’t have nearly enough concentration to dodge everything, not even most of the brutal attack.

Time paused, time restarted at different points. More attacks - more fireballs, more bones. Blue and orange and white and back again.

Asriel raised his hand in a forceful gesture.

 _”STOP IT!”_ he screamed, breathing heavily.

“You’ve done something very bad, my child. I do not wish to harm you, but when you put so many others in harm’s way...” Soriel’s eye blinked blue. “think of it as your karmic retribution.”

The souls hummed. And Asriel fell to the floor, not even bothering to levitate any longer as pain bled into him, real pain. His shoulders quivered and his claws dragged down a pitch black surface.

> _Prince of this world,_  
>  _watch this story unfurl._  
>  _a strike you’ll miss,_  
>  _now do you get the gist?_

Frisk tugged at Soriel’s tail tuft. They turned.

“What is it, my child? is something the matter? are you hurt?”

Frisk shook their head, and fervently signed a quick response. They ran up to Asriel, who was trying to find purchase on the floor.

“What?!”

Frisk flinched at the harsh yell, but didn’t hesitate when they darted forward to give him a big, warm hug. A tear ran down Asriel’s cheek. His chest gave a squeeze and before long he was crying, an infinite, irrevocable sadness welling up inside of him and spilling out like a torrential wave consisting of sob and hiccups.

“M-mom,” he whimpered. “Mommy, please...”

Bright light flashed.

Asriel was back to his form as a child, Frisk’s size, horns not even growing out of his head yet. He had scratches and wounds all over him.

“Mommy, please don’t hurt me!”

He continued to cry into Frisk’s shoulder, clutching the back of their sweater.

Soriel placed a hand over their ribcage, as if they could feel the ghost of a heart beating somewhere deep inside of them. Somewhere...

All it took was a single beat too long of sadness.

A flash of light that rippled through space, and they were unfused.

Not even taking the time to recover, Toriel rushed forward to hold both Asriel and Frisk close to her. Sans, however, was exhausted. It took more energy than he would’ve liked to admit for him just to stay awake.

Throughout that entire fusion, Soriel’s near-limitless stamina came more from Toriel than him.

“My children, my dearest children. I’m sorry for putting you through that,” Toriel murmured.

“I’m so sorry, Mommy, Chara, I don’t... I don’t know why I-” Asriel began, but cut himself off with an anguished wail.

“Shh, fret not, Asriel dearest. I’m here. You’re safe, now.”

“I don’t wanna fight anymore... I’m so sorry.”

Sans took a breath despite his lack of lungs.

“then we’ll spare you,” he said.

> _Can you not fight me?_  
>  _is your desire to FLEE?_  
>  _i can tell you’re getting tired._  
>  _but your DETERMINATION i admire._

Asriel pressed himself to his mother, feeling her heartbeat, feeling her warmth. There was a familiarity of it. Not the feeling of her presence, but rather, the feeling of _feeling._ Almost every single soul in the Underground was pulsing within him now.

Their will was one.

But he turned to Frisk now.

“I always was a crybaby, wasn’t I, Chara?”

Frisk gave him a curious look.

“...I know,” Asriel said. “You’re not actually Chara, are you? Chara’s been gone for a long time. Um... what... What IS your name?”

“Frisk.”

“‘Frisk’? That’s... A nice name. Frisk... I haven’t felt like this for a long time. As a flower, I was soulless. I lacked the power to love other people. However, with everyone’s souls inside me... I not only have my own compassion back... But I can feel every other monster’s as well.

“They all care about each other so much. And... they care about you too, Frisk. I wish I could tell you how everyone feels about you.” He paused. “Monsters are weird. Even though they barely know you... I feels like they all really love you. Haha.”

Asriel sniffled.

“Frisk... I... I understand if you can’t forgive me. I understand if you hate me. I acted so strange and horrible. I hurt you. I hurt so many people. Friends, family,” he said, glancing at Toriel. “Bystanders... There’s no excuse for what I’ve done.”

“I forgive you,” Frisk said.

“Wh... what? ...Frisk, come on. You’re... You’re gonna make me cry again. Besides, even if you do forgive me, I can’t keep these souls inside of me,” he mumbled, stepping back and wiping his eyes.

Frisk took his hand, and Asriel sniffled.

“The least I can do is return them,” he said. Then he gave a firm nod and a determined look. “But first... there’s something I have to do. Right now, I can feel everyone’s hearts beating as one. They’re all burning with the same desire.”

He turned to Sans, who stepped forward. He and Toriel understood, surely they did if they were offering their hands to him.

Asriel closed his eyes and took their souls. He fixed Frisk with a meaningful stare.

“With everyone’s power... With everyone’s determination... It’s time for monsters to finally go free.”

Then he backed up from Frisk and channelled the collective power swirling within him, lifting off the floor. Light flooded out from him in glowing waves. Everything shook. The souls, all of them, monster and human, gleamed with hope.

Frisk shielded their eyes from the brightness.

The barrier was destroyed.

Matter rained down as Asriel settled back to the floor.

“Frisk... I have to go now. Without the power of everyone’s souls, I can’t keep maintaining this form. In a little while... I’ll turn back into a flower. I’ll stop being ‘myself’. I’ll stop being able to feel love again. So... Frisk. It’s best if you just forget about me, OK? Just go be with the people who love you.”

Frisk walked up to Asriel and gave him another hug.

“Ha... ha... I don’t want to let go...”

When Asriel lowered his arms, Frisk did too, and stepped back.

“Frisk... You’re... You’re going to do a great job, OK? No matter what you do. Everyone will be there for you, okay? Well... my time’s running out. Goodbye.”

He turned, and began to walk away. Then he stopped.

“By the way... Frisk... take care of Mom and Dad for me, OK?” Asriel added, giving a little smile.

Frisk made a face, wanting to ask which... ‘Dad’ Asriel meant, his own or...? Maybe both of them? But the statement was likely rhetorical, so they let Asriel go even though it hurt them to do so.

More light flared, and everything faded out.

> _Temporal is my power,_  
>  _pointless is your glower._  
>  _if you give MERCY a try,_  
>  _maybe i won’t make you cry._

“Frisk! This is all just a bad dream...! Please, wake up...!”

Frisk woke up to see their friends standing around them. They stood.

“Oh!” Toriel exclaimed. “You are awake! Thank goodness!”

“W-we were so worried...!” Alphys added. “It felt like you were out forever!”

“Yeah! Any longer and I would have freaked out!” Undyne said. “Tell us next time you decide to take a nap, okay!?”

“yeah. you made papyrus cry like a baby,” Sans said.

“WHAT!!” Papyrus exclaimed. “I DIDN’T CRY!! I DON’T CRY!! I just... caught something in my eye.”

“what did you catch?” Sans asked.

“TEARS!!!”

“Now, now,” Asgore said. “The important part is that Frisk is all right. Here, Frisk. Why not drink some tea? It’ll make you feel better.”

“Errr...” Toriel said. “How about we give them space, first? They must be very exhausted. Though, from what, I am not certain. Frisk...” she said, in a tone that was both caring and be-careful-now-my-child. “We do not remember exactly what happened.”

At that, Frisk shot Sans a confused, desperate look. Sans winked back as Toriel continued to speak.

“There was a flower... And then, everything went white. But now the barrier is gone. When you are ready, we will all return to the surface. It seems the door to the east will lead us there now. But before then... Perhaps you might want to take a walk? You can say goodbye to all of your wonderful friends. Do as you wish. We will all wait for you here.”

As soon as she finished speaking, Undyne and Alphys immediately dove into passionate conversation about some anime. Undyne dragged Papyrus in to solve a dispute, and Asgore asked what they were talking about. The ensuing shouts were loud and excited.

Frisk stomped up to Toriel and Sans, gesticulating wildly because they couldn’t quite muster up words appropriate for the situation that also reflected their current train of thought.

“I feel it’d be better for them not to know, my child,” Toriel said.

“it’s possible to know too much sometimes,” Sans added.

“Don’t scare them,” Toriel reprimanded.

“after what happened, i don’t think there’s anything that’ll scare frisk.”

Frisk threw their hands into the air, and shook their head. They hand-signed that they’d be back later, and exited the room.

> _Just let the anger go now._  
>  _just let the tears flow now._  
>  _flutter the wings of a dove,_  
>  _unneeded is your LOVE._

Before they emerged into the Overworld, Toriel took Sans’ hand and pulled him back.

“Sans.”

“yeah?” Sans asked, ducking into the shadows by her side.

“I love you,” Toriel whispered.

“shit, i... wow. i, uh. you caught me off guard there,” Sans replied, his face glowing blue.

“I am sorry,” Toriel murmured, shaking her head a little. “I’ve been so worried about Frisk, and... I’ve been so worried about you, too. I can’t stop thinking...”

“you don’t have to apologize. i- fuck,” Sans muttered. He looked up, into Toriel’s eyes, deep red like the blood of a technicolour apocalypse. “i love you, too.”

“That’s a relief,” Toriel said, exhaling.

“oh c’mon, now, tori...”

“Hehe, just teasing you. But... it really is a relief.”

Frisk pushed past Undyne and Papyrus, both clamouring for first glance of the Overworld but being good-natured about it. Even though she was giving him a noogie.

“Let’s go!” Frisk exclaimed, with a smile that radiated happiness.

The kind of smile that warmed Toriel’s heart, and put peace in Sans’ nonexistent one.

“Let’s go, let’s go, Mom!” they said. Then they shot Sans a knowing look, and added, quieter, _“Dad.”_

Toriel’s giggle just made Sans blush again, and he wanted to cover his face because he never blushed around others, but around Toriel, he really couldn’t help it.

Frisk took their hands and led them out of the Underground.

**Author's Note:**

> yes i really like shakespeare also it's a school night and i'm still awake? also the formatting for this site is impossible. i'm working on it.


End file.
